J.J's order to IGP challenged
NPP loses bid to stop NDC civil servants
Let's avoid violence - as nation goes for landmark polls
New body to take over students loan scheme
Ghanaians cry to God
Whose violence
Rawlings accuses private media of nonsense, lashes at opposition
I am a victim of patriotism - Kakra
900 teenagers get AIDS
J.J's order to IGP challenged
A former Chief of Staff, Air Vice Marshal M.A. Otu (rtd), has described last Monday's ultimatum to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Peter Nanfuri, by President Jerry Rawlings as unconstitutional, arbitrary and unprecedented in the nation's security history, reports The Ghanaian Chronicle.
Contributing to a roundtable discussion on 'Reflections On Security' organised by Accra based African Security Dialogue and Research (ASDR), he said under the Constitution, the IGP is answerable to the Minister of the Interior and is also mandated to report matters bordering on state security to the Police Council, chaired by the Vice President.
The retired senior air force officer stated that Ghana is not a federal state but a unitary one so everyone, irrespective of one's position, must respect the rules and provisions of the Constitution.
Mr H.R. Amonoo, a former Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Defence in the First Republic and Mr K.B. Asante, a former PNDC Secretary for Education corroborated Air Vice Marshal Otu's submission.
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NPP loses bid to stop NDC civil servants
The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) writ filed at the Supreme Court to enforce a constitutional provisions, barring civil servants from active politics unless they resign or retire from the service has been dismissed on legal grounds in a 3-2 decision by the Supreme court.
The Supreme Court, presided over by Justice Bamford Addo, upheld a preliminary objection raised by Mr Martin Amidu challenging the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to entertain the substantive case.
Mr Kwame B. Akuffo, led by Nana Akufo-Addo, as counsel for the NPP argued that the NPP's action does not seek the Supreme Court's interpretation of the constitution but rather to enforce one of its provisions.
However, Mr Martin Amidu, representing the Attorney-General raised objection on grounds that enforcement can only come about after an election has been conducted and since no election has been conducted there is no case that can be brought to the Supreme Court as it has no jurisdiction.
The NPP had dragged Mr Kofi Opoku Manu of the Ministry of Finance, Dr Oteng Adjei of the Ministry of Mines and Energy who are standing on the ticket of the NDC in the Ashanti Region and the Attorney-General to court.
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Let's avoid violence - as nation goes for landmark polls
Traditional rulers in the country have appealed to leaders of the various political parties to prevail on their supporters to avoid all forms of violence as the country goes to the polls on December 7, the Daily Graphic reported in a banner story.
In a 12-page declaration read at a joint meeting of chiefs and representatives of political parties which was attended by members of the diplomatic corps, in Accra on Wednesday, the chiefs said Ghanaians would not be spared untold suffering if the country is plunged into chaos after the elections.
The Okyehene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin, who read the declaration - the 'Osu Declaration', called on the leaders to help prevent such a situation and said the intention of the chiefs was to highlight the dangers associated with the elections and how best to prevent any possible anarchy.
Among the party leaders present were Prof. J.E. Atta-Mills of the NDC, Prof. George Hagan of the CPP and Mr Dan Lartey of the GCPP, the NPP National Chairman, Mr S.A. Odoi-Sykes, and representatives of the National Reform Party.
Representatives of the various Regional House of Chiefs were also present.
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New body to take over students loan scheme
The Graphic in another front-page capture says a new body, the Students Loan Corporation, is to take over the administration of the Student's loan scheme from the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) next year.
The corporation, a specialised agency that would be responsible for the disbursement of loans, will also put in place effective and efficient loan recovery mechanisms.
Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, Deputy Minister of Education, in charge of tertiary education, who disclosed this in Accra, said the source of funding for the Students Loan Corporation will be contributions from the National Education Trust Fund and others he did not name.
The ministries of Education and Finance and SSNIT are currently working out modalities to enable the corporation to begin full-scale operations on schedule.
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Ghanaians cry to God
The Evening News says the Electoral Commission will hold a prayer and fasting session on Friday, November 24 at the conference hall of the commission to seek the divine intervention of God for peace and stability to prevail during the Presidential and parliamentary elections in December.
A statement signed by Mr Anthony Ekpedzor, electoral officer at the Public Affairs Department of the commission, said it is an undeniable fact that peace and stability are essential prerequisites to a healthy socio-economic and political development of any society.
"It is in this regard that it cannot be well over-emphasised that there is the need for peace and harmony to prevail, devoid of violence before, during and after the Presidential and Parliamentary election son December 7, 2000, hence the call to prayer in the Electoral Commission."
The Reverends Dr Mensah Otabil, General Overseer, International Central Gospel Church, Prof. John Nana Antoh, International Living Bread and Resurrection Church and Kofi Okyere, were named as officiating pastors.
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Whose violence
The Accra Mail says the expectation that violence before, during and after Election 2000 would mar Ghana's latest attempt at democracy, is consuming much of every one's time lately.
It says barely twenty days to polling day, the portends are not encouraging as the politics of hate intensify at the same time that bleats of "let's pray" for peace get louder.
It says even as some churches are praising Flt. Lt. Rawlings for his good leadership, it is becoming increasingly clear that for any possible violence to occur, it will ironically be between his NDC and Kufuor's NPP with Rawlings, rather than Prof. J.E. Atta Mills as a major factor.
Those calling the shots are Rawlings and the original coterie of the PNDC in the NDC and he is not about to relinquish what he believes he has cooked for others to eat, not even Mills, having made that clear in words and deeds several times, the paper said.
According to the paper, J.A. Kufuor is also determined that he is not going to allow the verdict to be stolen again and certainly not under his watch a second time round.
If there is going to be any peace deal or if the drums of war are going to rattle, much of it will depend on these two men and a third one: Dr Afari Gyan, Chairman of the Electoral Commission. If his commission should give any reason to any of the political parties to cry wolf, that could signal the beginning of hostilities, Accra Mail stated.
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Rawlings accuses private media of nonsense, lashes at opposition
The Independent in its lead story said President Jerry John Rawlings once again lambasted the opposition and some private FM stations which, he said, emit nonsense.
He also hit at opposition doctorate holders who, he said, only enjoy criticising the government's economic policies without offering suitable alternatives.
The president is said to have claimed that he as an ordinary level certificate holder can do better than the opposition doctorate holders who want to become Ministers of Finance.
"I keep saying I have nothing but an 'O' level but I think better than some of these people with doctorate degrees who say they want to be Ministers of Finance of this country. They open their big mouths and say the cedi is sick, what does that mean? I wonder where and how they managed to get their doctorate degrees"?
The attack, which occurred at the commissioning of the Takoradi Thermal Plant, according to the Independent, came only 48 hours after President Rawlings had attended a Thanksgiving service in Accra to preached peace and reconciliation.
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I am a victim of patriotism - Kakra
Mr Kakra Essamuah, a former leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has described himself as a victim of patriotism.
"My purported dismissal from the NPP for expressing my opinion on the undisputed competence of Professor John Atta Mills to become the next President of Ghana is a desperate attempt by the party leadership to stifle dissent and prevent the truth from being told," he said.
Mr Essamuah in a statement issued at the weekend in reaction to his purported dismissal said his primary allegiance was to the nation and that he would not allow his membership of a political party to prevent him from telling the truth and doing what was in the best interest of the nation.
"I have a duty to this nation to help ensure that only the best personality at any given time is given the opportunity to rule us. For me now, that person is no one other than the Vice President Professor John Atta Mills," he said.
According to him anybody who have an alternative view in my opinion is doing this nation a disservice since the Vice President is streets ahead of all those currently vying for the presidential slot.
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900 teenagers get AIDS
The Junior Graphic reports that about 900 teenagers have been infected with the HIV virus since the disease was discovered in 1986 according to Mr Adamu Wiah, Surveillance Officer of the National HIV/AIDS Control Programme.
He said since the disease was discovered in the country in 1986, the National AIDS Control Programme has been compiling data on persons infected with the HIV/AIDS.
When the programme updated data in June, this year, it was detected that a total of 120 children between the ages of 0 - 4 have the HIV virus, sixty-four of them being females and 56, males.
He gave other figures as 25 for children between the ages five and nine and 39 for those between 10 and 19 years.
About 2,731 people in all (including adults) have been infected with the virus this year.
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